How to determine whether there are termites in the wall

Although termites are small, they are very powerful. It can corrode all wooden structures and can even damage bricks. Termite, also known as insect captain. Termites have soft and flat bodies, and can be white, light yellow, reddish brown or dark brown, with different species having different body colors. So it’s difficult to distinguish. Today I will tell you how to determine whether there are termites in the walls.

The mouthparts are typical chewing type, and the antennae are bead-shaped. There are long-winged, short-winged and wingless types. The winged species have two pairs of narrow membranous wings, and the size, shape and wing venation are similar, so they are called Isoptera. After a short period of flight, the termite's wings can fall off through the unique transverse seams at the base.

Termites are insects that live in social groups and have a complex organizational structure. Individuals within a group can be divided into two major types based on their morphology and division of labor, namely reproductive and non-reproductive types.

1. Reproductive type: sexual female ants and male ants, whose duty is to maintain old colonies and create new colonies. There are three levels in this type.

(1) Large-winged or winged type: The body is ossified, yellow, brown or black, with two pairs of well-developed wings. After shedding the wings, they can become father and mother ants that establish new colonies. Every spring and summer. On a hot and humid evening after the rain, a large number of long-winged reproductive ants suddenly fly out of the ant nest and fly low near a building not far from the nest. The flight time is very short. This phenomenon is called nuptial flight or group flight (swarming). The ants were flying low in the sky, as if they were having a dance party, each freely choosing their partner without any restraint.

Those who are in love fly to the ground, take off their wings, and chase each other in pairs, usually with the female in front and the male behind. They complete the marriage process, find a suitable place, build a new nest, lay eggs, reproduce offspring, and establish a new group. This newly married pair of male and female ants will be the mother and father ants of the future new colony, that is, the queen and king ants of the new colony.

The couple lived a monogamous civilized social life for life. Termites' nuptial flights and swarms can often be seen in various places south of the Yangtze River in my country, but not all individuals in the nuptial flight can form pairs and establish new colonies. When they fly out in large numbers, they are often eaten by various birds, predatory insects or other animals. Only a few of them can get married and become partners. Although a small number, it is enough to sustain the reproduction of the species and cause damage to wooden buildings.

(2) Short-winged type: called the supplementary reproductive type, which is more common in terrestrial species.

(3) Wingless type: They are also supplementary reproductive ants and are completely wingless individuals. Only exists in very primitive species.

2. Non-reproductive type: refers to termites that have no reproductive ability. They have no wings and their reproductive organs have degenerated. They are mainly responsible for labor and combat, and are therefore divided into worker ants and soldier ants.